Senate narrowly kills rule on arbitration, class-action lawsuits

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republicans and Wall Street scored a hard-fought victory on Tuesday when the U.S. Senate killed a new ban on financial companies requiring customers to surrender their right to sue in order to open accounts.

Republican Vice President Mike Pence appeared on the floor at 10:11 p.m. EDT to cast the tie-breaking vote as Senate president, putting the final count at 51-50.

The Republican-dominated House of Representatives has already passed the resolution repealing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) rule released in July. Fellow Republican President Donald Trump is expected to quickly sign the resolution, which also bars regulators from instituting a similar ban in the future.

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President Trump's life inside the White House

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President Trump's life inside the White House

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks after John Kelly was sworn in as White House Chief of Staff in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, U.S., July 31, 2017. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts

A television plays a news report on U.S. President Donald Trump's recent Oval Office meeting with Russia's Ambassador to the U.S. Sergei Kislyak as night falls on offices and the entrance of the West Wing White House in Washington, U.S. May 15, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

U.S. President Barack Obama meets with President-elect Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington November 10, 2016. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, U.S., July 31, 2017. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts

The White House is seen the day after U.S. President Donald Trump's inauguration in Washington, U.S., January 21, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

First Lady Melania Trump holds a baby as U.S. President Donald Trump (not pictured) greets members of the congress and their families as they attend a congressional picnic event at the White House in Washington, U.S., June 22, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Barria TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

U.S. President Donald Trump, flanked by Senior Advisor Jared Kushner (standing, L-R), Vice President Mike Pence and Staff Secretary Rob Porter welcomes reporters into the Oval Office for him to sign his first executive orders at the White House in Washington, U.S. January 20, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

Counselor to U.S. President Donald Trump, Kellyanne Conway prepares to go on the air in front of the White House in Washington, U.S., January 22, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

U.S. President Donald Trump greets Director of the FBI James Comey as Director of the Secret Service Joseph Clancy (L) watches during the Inaugural Law Enforcement Officers and First Responders Reception in the Blue Room of the White House in Washington, U.S., January 22, 2017. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 15: U.S. President Donald Trump is seen on a television news show in the West Wing of the White House, on May 15, 2017 in Washington, DC. Earlier, National security advisor H.R. McMaster spoke to the media about President Trump's meeting with Russian diplomats in the Oval Office last week and reports that Trump shared classified information with them. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

U.S. President Donald Trump holds up the executive order on withdrawal from the Trans Pacific Partnership after signing it in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington January 23, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

U.S. President Donald Trump plays host to a reception and meeting with U.S. congressional leaders including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) (L-R), Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI), Vice President Mike Pence and Representative Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) in the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, U.S. January 23, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

U.S. President Donald Trump escorts British Prime Minister Theresa May after their meeting at the White House in Washington, U.S., January 27, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

U.S. President Donald Trump walks from the Oval Office to Marine One upon his departure from the White House in Washington January 26, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

The Marine One helicopter transporting U.S. President Donald Trump is seen as it departs from the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, U.S., for a trip to Philadelphia, January 26, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

U.S. President Donald Trump (seated) is surrounded by staff and aides as he prepares to sign executive orders in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, U.S. January 28, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

U.S. President Donald Trump gives a thumbs-up to reporters as he waits to speak by phone with the Saudi Arabia's King Salman in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, U.S. January 29, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to announce his nomination of Neil Gorsuch for the empty associate justice seat of the U.S. Supreme Court at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., January 31, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with Matthew S Levatich, CEO of Harley Davidson during a visit of the company's executives at the White House in Washington U.S., February 2, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

The words "Oval Office" adorn the bottom of a coffee cup during a meeting hosted by U.S. President Donald Trump with county sheriffs at the White House in Washington, U.S. February 7, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

A television plays a news report on former White House chief of staff Reince Priebus as night falls on the West Wing of White House in Washington, U.S., July 28, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 16: The White House is seen May 16, 2017 in Washington, DC. President Donald Trump tweeted this morning saying he has the 'absolute right' to share information with Russia. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

With former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger (L) at his side, U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to reporters after his meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, U.S., May 10, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

Deputy White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders holds the daily briefing at the White House in Washington, U.S. July 12, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks as he hosts a Congressional picnic event, accompanied by First Lady Melania Trump, at the White House in Washington, U.S., June 22, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Barria TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

U.S. President Donald Trump (C) gathers with Congressional Republicans in the Rose Garden of the White House after the House of Representatives approved the American Healthcare Act, to repeal major parts of Obamacare and replace it with the Republican healthcare plan, in Washington, U.S., May 4, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Barria TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY